brucksch



(No Model.) I 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

E. BRUCKSOH. DEVICE FOR PRBVENTING PERSONS FALLING FROM LADDERS.

No. 543,464. Patented July so, 1895.

W/TNESSES:

(No Modem a sheets-shag@ 2.

E. BRUCKSCH.

DEVICE FOR PREVENTING PERSONSV PALLING FROM LADDERS.

N0. 543,464. Patented July 30., 1895.-

INVENTUH WITNESSES:

y Patented July 30, 1895.

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' UNITED STATES PATENT Erice.

EMIL BRUCKSCH, OF NIEDERSCHNBRUNN, GERMANY.

DEVICE FOR PREVENTING PERSONS FALLING FROM LADDERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 543,464, dated July 30, 1895.l

Application filed December 28, 1894-.- Serial No. 533,181. (No model.)

`To all whowr it' may concern.'

Be it known that I, EMIL BRUCKSCH, miningengineer, a subject of the German Emperor, residing at Niederschnbrunn, Province of Silesia, Kingdom ot Prussia, German Empire,

v vhave invented a certain new and useful Device for Preventing Persons from Falling Down from Ladders, of which the following is aspeciiication. j

. My present invention has for its object a de 'vice for preventing persons from falling down from ladders.

This invention has been cansedby the circumstance that the thumb is inactive in frequenting ladders; and it consists, essentially, in hooks to be attached to the thumb of each hand in such a manner that they will come intosuch a position with reference to the steps of the ladder as soon as the four fingers touch the steps of it as to affect automatically these hooks to gear withthe steps in case the person would not have sufficient support to stand.

. The latter circumstance occurs frequently in case the miners are young people or old peop le. In vthe first case it is the Want of attention and in the second case the Want of physical strength,which cause such inconveniences;

but also miners of normal age may come into a l p Vditlicult position in summer by reason of the chau ge of temperature,which causes the miner to turn giddy; orin winter the fingers will become unserviceable by reason of cold,`or also the boots or shoes will become slippery by moisture or snow. Moreover, the firemen, t1lers,slaters, and the like will often come into the danger of falling down fromladders as high as a house, and my present invention ento Work withoutv ables also men of this kind any danger.

On the annexed drawings I have represented several modifications of such a device.

By Figures l and 2 has been illustrated, in

p 4a partly front elevation and a partly longituditurned ninety degrees around its axis With reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a cross-section on the line @c fr, Fig. 5.

The hook a is provided with a trough-shaped shank a in such a manner that the thumb may enterv into the cavity of it. As it has been shown by dotted-lines, Fig. 5, and byfull lines, Fig. 6, this trough-shaped shank a is preferably provided With aA perforation a2 for the purpose to leave free the joint of thethumb. The shank a is furthermore provided with afeathering-shell b, made from caoutchouc or the like, in order to prevent the thumb and the shank to move sideWise one-against the other. The dislocation of this shank with reference to the thumb in the longitudinal direction may be obviated-in one Way or the other. According to Figs. l and 2 this purpose is reached means of a strap of leather d to be put around the Wrist and being attached to the shank a' by means of a keeper c, which isfastened by means of an eyelet a3 of this shank.

In case it is preferred notto make use of the Wrist ,each keeper c may serve to attach one strap of leather e, these straps being attached to a girt f to be put around the body,

`as will be seen from Fig. 3.

vturn feeble. The hooks are of course not allowed to hinder the normal climbing of the miner, iireman, or the like.

Instead of making use of two straps of leather e, lying on the'backof the person,

Aroc

` steps g may be caught by them after the hook a has been loosened.

The fastening of the hook a to the thumb may be varied in the following manner: As will be seen from Figs. 9 and 10, which show the hook in a longitudinal section and a side elevation, while Fig. 11 is a section on the line y y, Fig. 10, the shank a may be provided with a globular cavity a4, which serves as abutment of the thumb, while the feathering-shell of the hook or the substitute for it-the feathering-rings R-are drawn over the thumb. These rings R are fixed to the shank o. by means of circular tappets a5.

Fig. 12 is a side elevation of a hook, the shell of which has been shown by this figure in a longitudinal section. Fig. 13 is a front elevation of these two parts, and Fig. 14 a cross-section on the line ,e a, Fig. 13. According to these figures the shell proper h is made from kid-leather, and itis provided with some rings b2 made from caoutchouc.

Fig. 15 is a longitudinal section of a further modification, and Fig. 16 a front elevation, while Fig. 17 is a section on the line w', Fig. 16. In this case therehas been xed,by sewing or the like, to the shank a a piece of lleather i', large enough to inclose the outer limb of the thumb. l The ends of this piece of leather are held together by means of alock# ing device as they are used in gloves. For instance, I have arranged a locking device M', as it has been known by the German Patent No. 37,984. Such a locking device M has been illustrated by Fig. 18 in a longitudinal section-that is to say, at a locked state-while Figs. 19 and 2O show thedevice at an unlocked state. One haltof this locking device M consists of a non-elastic box fm, Fig. 19,A while the other half is a feathering-knob m', Fig. 20.

As will be seen from Fig. 2l, the hook a may also be fastened to the thumb by means of a complete glove N.

Finally the hook proper ci and the lshank a may be joined together by means of a swivel.`

(See Fig. 22.) By such an arrangement the hook proper is enabled to be set in inactivity, as it will4 be required in some cases. stance, that fireman who holds the mouth of the pipe must be provided with gloves, that his fingers dont grow stiff in winter; but he ought to have the fingers andalso the thumb free after he has reached the normal position. Then he will fasten the strap of leather to the step of the ladder and turn the hook proper backwardly. I prefer to x the hook to its shaft by means of a nut o, screwed upon that part of the hook which is situated in the neighboi-hood of the shoulder a6 of it. This hook is supposed t0 have been bent after it has been passed through the boring a7 of the shank a. v

Such a device will be very useful for mines provided with'apparatus for descent and ascent of men in a pit.

What I claim, and desire to'secure by Letters'Patent, is-

1. A device for preventing persons from falling while climbing a ladder, comprising a hook having a connection for retaining it in hook having means for securing it to the thumb of the wearer with its upper end overhanging the hand, and a connection from the hook to the wearer, substantially as described.

3. A device for preventing persons from falling while climbing a ladder, comprising a For n- A' hook, a sleeve or collar on the shank of the many, this Gth day of December, 1894:.

EMIL BRUGKSCH. Vitnesses:

PAUL WOL'FF, DAVID W. MCGEE. 

